JS3 - Mud and Grease

Salut à tous !

Hi Everyone!

Alors, je n'ai pas chômé, mais juste avant la dernière séance photo, mon coeur s'est arrêté de battre. Alors que la pluie s'abattait dehors, menaçant de détériorer la porte du sous-sol, déjà bien atteinte, j'ai laissé de côté le JS3. En descendant les escaliers, j'ai entendu un bruit suspect. Malheur. Une des caisses de rangement latérale en photodécoupe s'était décollée. Rien de bien méchant. Un peu de colle et on repart !

So, I didn't remain idle, but just minutes before the last photo shooting, my heart stopped beating. The rain was pooring down, threatening the cellar door to rot, as it is already, so I decided to let the model rest for a minute. Going down the stairs, I heard a suspicious noise. Misery! One of the lateral PE boxes broke down. Nothing bad. A little glue and let's go again!

J'en ai profité pour jouer un peu avec les pigments... Je les applique secs sur les différentes parties du modèle et je les disperse un peu avec du diluant pour énamels.

I also added some pigments here and there. I applied them dry and slightly move them using Odorless Thinner for Enamels.

Pour la rouille, j'ai appliqué plusieurs pointes de Rust Streaking Grime d'AMMO que j'ai tiré vers le bas. Puis un léger jus de Light Rust Wash d'AMMO avant de finir par des pigments Track Rust.

For the rust, I applied some dots of AMMO Rust Streaking Grime that I pulled down to make some streaks. Then I added a soft wash of Light Rust Wash and finished by applying dry Track Rust pigments.

Alors, la boue, les pigments, le truc qui me fait toujours peur. Mais on y va, on ne progresse pas sans essayer. C'est du plastique, quoi ! Pas ma vie que je joue !

So, mud, pigments, the things that always scare me to death. But let's go, you never get better without trying. It's plastic, come on! I'm not putting my life at stake!

Alors voici comment j'ai procédé.
J'ai commencé par appliquer du Turned Earth d'AMMO. Super produit pour une boue assez épaisse. Je pose le produit au pinceau et j'attends que ça sèche. Je recherche avant tout le volume !

So here's how I made it.
I started by applying some AMMO Turned Earth. Great product for a quite heavy mud. I used a brush and waited for it to dry. I am looking for volume!

Puis, avec un pinceau à pochoir et un mélangeur, je viens projeter des quantités de Dry Steppe d'AMMO. En projetant le produit, on obtient des formes irrégulières comme de la boue réelle.

Then, with a stencil brush and a mixing tool, I create some splashes using AMMO Dry Steppe. Doing so, you will get some random shapes looking like real dirt.

Enfin, il suffit de venir ajouter des pigments secs une fois que l'ensemble est bien sec. On joue sur les tonalités (sombre, moyen et clair) et les endroits où la boue est censée être plus humide. Puis on rajoute quelques coulures de boue fraîche/graisse avec un peu de Fresh Engine Oil d'AMMO et quelques pigments noirs au pinceau ainsi que quelques éclaboussures.

Finally, you just have to add some dry pigments once the model is dry. Play with lights (light, medium and dark) and places where the mud should be more humide. Then I added some fresh mud/grease streaks using AMMO Fresh Engine Oil and black pigments using a brush and I also added some splashes.

J'espère que ça vous plaît !

I hope you like it!

Panzer 38(t) - This is the end!

Salut à tous ! Bon, je décide que mon Panzer 38(t) est terminé ! C'était une belle aventure et pour vous dire la vérité, cela faisait un bon bout de temps que je n'avais pas TOTALEMENT fini une maquette ! Ca fait du bien !

Hi everyone! Well, I've decided that my Panzer 38(t) is done! That was a nice journey and to tell you the truth, it's been while since I haven't TOTALLY finished a model! It feels really good!

Panzair... Je ne sais pas faire cet effet aussi bien que toi...

La fois précédente, nous nous étions arrêté à la mise en peinture avec l'application d'un filtre.
J'ai donc poursuivi mon travail en ajoutant un jus localisé autour des détails.

Last time, we finished with the painting process and the application of a filter.
I kept on working with some pinwash around the details.

Puis je réalise quelques traînées à l'aide de produits énamel AMMO. J'applique les coulures au pinceau et je les fonds avec un pinceau plat et du diluant (très peu !).

Then I made some streaks using AMMO products. I draw lines that I blend using a flat brush and some thinner (very little!).

Une fois cette étape terminée, je me suis focalisé sur l'ajout d'ombres et d'éclaircies à l'aide de peinture à l'huile. Quelques mélange de couleurs on été appliquées sur les différentes couleurs : un rouge clair sur les parties rouge, un vert clair pour le vert, et du buff, voire du blanc sur les parties jaunes. J'ai même utilisé du blanc pur sur toutes les parties pour vraiment affadir la peinture.
Un brun sombre m'a servi d'ombre. On applique la peinture plus ou moins diluée et on la travaille avec un pinceau juste imprégné de diluant.

Once it was done, I focused on adding highlights and shadows with oil paints. Some mixes of colors were applied on the different colors: a bright red for red areas, bright green on green and buff and even white for yellow areas. I even used some pure white to really distress the paint.
A dark brown was my tool for shadows. I just applied the paint, more or less thinned, that I worked with a brush slightly dampened in thinner.

Une fois que l'ensemble est bien sec, j'ai réalisé mes écaillures et éraillures au pinceau et à l'éponge. Je dois encore m'améliorer sur cet aspect. Certaines éraillures sont un peu trop vives et j'ai dû les adoucir avec la technique de l'éponge. Mais le résultat me semble correct néanmoins, j'ai des surfaces assez contrastées, certaines sont fortement écaillées alors que d'autres sont relativement intactes.

Once this is dry, I made some chips using a fine brush and the sponge technique. I still have to improve this process. Some chips are too sharps and I had to soften them using the sponge. But the result is correct, and I managed to get some contrasts, some areas are really chipped whereas others are quite intact.

J'utilise ensuite du Streaking Grime, du Light Rust Wash et du Rust Streaking Grime AMMO pour fondre davantage mes écaillures dans la surface. C'est assez simple. J'applique le produit et je le travaille avec un pinceau imbibé de diluant. J'essaie toujours de travailler la surface en créant un dégradé qui se fond au fur et à mesure que l'on s'éloigne de la zone d'application.

I then used Streaking Grime, Light Rust Wash and Rust Streaking Grime AMMO to blend my chips into the surface. It's quite simple. I applied the product that I blended with a brush dampened in some thinner. I always try to create a gradation that fades away from the area where the product was applied.

Le temps que tout cela sèche, je peins les équipements du char avec les produits LifeColor. J'ai essayé de mettre beaucoup de soin dans la réalisation du bois. Je suis assez satisfait !

The time for all these effects to dry, I painted the gear with Lifecolor paints. I've tried to be very careful when painting the wooden surfaces. I'm quite happy with the result.

Je poursuis aussi avec le pot d'échappement. Le set Dust and Rust de Lifecolor m'a beaucoup aidé. J'ai appliqué une couche de base claire que j'ai progressivement assombrie avec des applications très diluées des teintes plus sombres. J'ai concentré les teintes les plus sombres sur le dessus du pot et sur les zones soudées. De temps en temps, j'effectue un léger glacis avec une teinte plus claire pour harmoniser l'ensemble.

I also painted the exhaust. The Lifecolor Dust and Rust set really helped me. I applied a first bright shade of rust that I progressively darkened using very thinned layers of darker colors. I also used darker spots on the top of the exhaust and were the welds are supposed to be. From times to times, I also applied a general coat of highly diluted brighter shade to give harmony to the whole.

Bon, la maquette est sèche et j'applique à nouveau un pinwash pour retrouver mes détails perdus lors de l'utilisation de peinture à l'huile. J'utilise aussi d'autres produits pour réaliser des traînées de rouille (pas trop!).

Well, the model is dray and I add another pinwash to balance the effects I got when using the oils. I also used other products to make some rust streaks (not too much!).

Viens enfin la boue ! Je me créé 3 types de pigments : clairs, moyens et sombres. Je les applique au pinceau sur le bas du châssis et je dépose un peu de diluant Tamiya pour qu'ils adhèrent. Puis, avec différents produits aux énamels, je réalise quelques projections de peinture.

Then the mud! I made three batches of pigments: light, medium and dark. I apply them on the lower hull and I just add some Tamiya thinner to fix them. Then with different enamel products, I flick the brush to add some color.

Voilà, je suis assez content du résultat, même si je sais pertinemment que ce n'est pas parfait ! J'ai encore parfois du mal à lire le modèle et à parfaitement maîtriser les effets. Peut-être que le camouflage est un peu trop symétrique, que les écaillures sont trop prononcées et que la boue n'est pas encore parfaite. Mais... Je me suis bien amusé et c'est ce qui compte ! En tout cas, j'espère que ça vous plaît !

Well, I'm quite happy with the result, even if I perfectly know that this is not perfect! I still have problem reading the model and mastering the effects. Maybe the camouflage is too symmetrical, that the chips are too big (you can never have too small a chip!) and that the mud is not perfect yet. But I had a lot of fun and that's what matters! Anyway, I hope you like it!

Experimenting working pigments!

Hi everyone! This quick post will be exclusively in English since I wrote it for myself and shared it Michael Rinaldi. Pigments are hard to use for me, but fortunately practicing pays!

I.                    Yesterday’s attempts

These two pictures are yesterday’s first try at using pigments. I carefully brushed them and I somehow liked the effect near the cupola, although the pigments were a bit too big on the edge of the opening.

On the second picture, there were massive pigments added and then brushed around the details. I left them quite compact and misted some X-20A. Of course the result is massive pigments with no background pigments underneath. It looks like chunks of dust deposited like very small stones and doesn’t look realistic at all.

Both tries were irrelevant. It is starting to look the part near the episcope, but I think I just brushed these pigments today (you can see one very strong brush stroke) after another failed attempt, yesterday.

II.                  Today’s attempts

Near the welding line was a sponge attempt. I diluted pigments in water. It looks awful. It may be interesting in adding splashes, but I will forget this idea.

Around the opening was today’s try. The pigments were applied in one go and I brushed them carefully to reach the opening. Still, there are some visible brush strokes that are unwanted. Either this may result in some bigger pigments being crushed into the surface and leaving a line, or the brush stroke that was too strong on the surface, but I was really careful. Would another round of pigment have softened the result? Maybe but if I want just that small amount of pigments, then I’m stuck.

III.                Starting to look the part?

On this one, pigments were applied very softly with just a few pigments at a time and in 2 layers. The result is softer, I think the pigments have blended just enough. There was then an attempt at adding some Green Enamel on it. It looks fine on the picture but I think it still has some hard edges. I did this quite simply. I added some Slimy Dark Green that I diluted a lot and removed the excess on a paper towel. Then I touched the surface and watched it flow. I used my hairdryer to dry the thinner quickly to avoid tidemarks.

More dust here. I was afraid it would really bleach the surface and it did in some aspects. The base color is nearly invisible underneath. My question is “Is it believable? Does it look natural enough?” There were 3 rounds of pigments on this. I started from nearly the half of the surface and moved towards the edges trying just to push the pigments. I tried softening the edges by places but the pigments hold really toughly on the surface.

I also applied some Slimy Dark Green, and here the edge look harder. This question has still to be solved. It also happens with mud. Whenever I apply pigments on the lower hull and add some enamel effects on them with a brush, the thinner would flow and once it’s dried the edges are hard and not realistic. Is it a matter of dilution or a problem in the application process?

Right near the gun, under the welding line, the pigments were applied yesterday in one round. It looks like small rocks and there are barely any pigments underneath. I didn’t dare touching this with my brush, for I was quite sure they would leave marks on the surface.

Near the hook on the right hand side was a sponge application.

IV.                Previous attempts

Everything was tried today.

On this olive drab piece of styrene, I used 2 batches of pigments on the bottom right corner and the top left corner. The top left has around 4 to 6 pigment application. The colors underneath is not visible anymore, whereas the right one is visible in some places. For the latter, I worked my way from the center to the corner carefully pushing the pigments and fixing them when I reached the edges. Then I added some more pigments in the center that I pushed in part (some remained at the center) to the flat edge. The olive drab is still visible (partly) and was the result of 3 applications of pigments.

The bottom left corner and the very small right flat edge were just one pigment (the brightest) use with 2 or 3 applications.

Now the question is “for the 4 to 6 rounds of pigments. Is it too much?” If I want to have some transparency then I’m obviously going wrong. Still, there were many pigments in the top left corner, so that would explain it all. But is it really possible to get transparency when going through that many rounds?

 

On this Dark Yellow Primer, I am quite happy with the result on the right hand. I guess I used mid tones and light tones going from dark to bright (bright on top). It has a grainy finish that I like and this is what decided me to start operating on my model. It has some transparency and there is a gradation of colors that seems to be ok. The pigments are not chunky.

Still I did the exact same thing using only bright tones on the left and although it looks quite transparent some chunks remained, which doesn’t look too realistic.

V.                  Conclusion

Thus I am still wondering and experimenting on the techniques of pigment application. Being more satisfied with the very last piece of styrene, I think I am heading to the right direction.

However the notion of layering is still quite hard to apply on such small surface of application and the base color may suffer from the repeated application of pigments, considering my level. Even if I try adding very little pigments at a time, I find it hard to keep the right look.

Still, I feel comforted in the idea that adding pigments over pigments is not destroying the previous layer and adds in realism, as far as my limits are for now.

OPR and pigments is another subject that I should train on, avoiding tidemarks and hard edges. I barely touch the surface to unload the paint and not remove the pigments making them muddy, but the result is these hard edges and sometimes some tidemark when it comes to working on mud surfaces.

Another thing pointed out by Mike was the fact that the surface is really grainy. This happens when working with modulation. The angle taken by the airbrush makes the paint hit the surface in various ways. Sometimes it gets smooth when close enough and sometimes the paint dries before hitting the surface making it grainy...

FINALLY !!!

On this T-34 1/48th,

After many attempts, I really worked my way very slowly and added pigments little by little pushing them soflty and got to these results. The combination of HS, OPR and Pigments seems to work very well and I am very thankful to Michael Rinaldi for his long-time support and patience. Still, this has to be improved!